U.S. science panel tells industry to stop marketing junk food to kids

The report by the Institute of Medicine said the food industry should spend its marketing dollars on nutritious food and drinks.

"The foods advertised are predominantly high in calories and low in nutrition _ the sort of diet that puts children's long-term health at risk," said J. Michael McGinnis, a senior scholar at the institute and chairman of the report committee.

The report said evidence is limited on whether TV advertising leads to obesity in children. A study hasn't been done that would demonstrate a direct cause and effect.

Still, the panel found the evidence compelling enough to call for a concerted effort to change the nature of foods being marketed to children, said panel member Ellen A. Wartella, psychology professor at the University of California, Riverside.

The growth in new food products targeted to kids has been huge, from 52 introduced in 1994 to nearly 500 introduced last year, the report said.

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Source - The Santa Fe New Mexican


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